Windows XP Suffers its First Post-Retirement Security Flaw

In a security alert released on Saturday, Microsoft reports that there’s a serious vulnerability in Internet Explorer 6 through 11 that could allow hackers to take over your computer remotely if you happen to visit a malicious website.

According to security firm FireEye, it has already found evidence of an attack that targets IE 9 through 11 that uses a well-known Flash exploitation technique to gain access to your computer’s memory.

Microsoft has already said it plans to roll out an IE security update for all modern versions of Windows, but if you’re using XP, well, you’re out of luck, as support for that 12-year-old OS ended a few weeks ago.

All Internet Explorer users, regardless of operating system, have a few choices for avoiding this exploit. The easiest method is to use another browser, like Chrome or Firefox (both of which are currently still supported for Windows XP). If you need to stick with Internet Explorer, Microsoft has published some more advanced methods alongside its service advisory, including enabling Enhanced Protected Mode, adjusting security settings to High and disabling Active Scripting.

Regardless of what you do, it’s a good idea to take some action to make sure you’re safe from the exploit.